On Media

ABC walks back Tony Scott cancer report

By DYLAN BYERS

08/21/2012 08:02 AM EDT

ABC's Good Morning America, which drew an erroneous link between Colorado theater shooting suspect James Holmes and the Tea party last month, reported online yesterday that the late filmmaker Tony Scott, who committed suicide, had inoperable brain cancer.

But last night, Deadline Hollywood's Nikki Finke broke the news that Scott's widow said her husband did not have brain cancer:

That makes erroneous this morning’s Good Morning America report that he “had inoperable brain cancer” and quoting “a source close to him”. The ABC claim was widely picked up by media outlets globally and all the Hollywood press (but not Deadline) as the reason why Scott committed suicide Sunday by jumping off a Los Angeles County bridge at 12:35 PM. Within half an hour ABC was backing off its story (see below). This is the third time in a month that ABC News has erroneously reported on a sensitive news story. During the Aurora movie theater shooting tragedy, ABC News first claimed the gunman was a Tea Party member which was not true. And then the shooter’s mother accused ABC News of mischaracterizing a quote from her. The issues all seem the same: ABC News is not properly vetting its reporting. [Links mine.]

Following Deadline's story, ABC News walked back its initial report and issued the following statement under a new story with the headline, "Tony Scott Brain Cancer Report Appears in Doubt” (the original story also redirects here):

The family of director Tony Scott, who died Sunday after jumping off a Los Angeles bridge, was not aware Scott had cancer, Los Angeles County Coroner Ed Winter told ABC News station KABC in Los Angeles.

ABC News was unable to reach Scott’s family to confirm the coroner’s statement.

ABC News had reported the director of films such as Top Gun, Days of Thunder, and Crimson Tide had inoperable brain cancer, citing a source close to Scott.

Finke reports that the results of Scott's autopsy will take four to eight weeks.

Brian Ross, who has been responsible for many inaccurate or misleading reports at ABC News, was not involved in the reporting on Scott's death, a network spokesperson confirmed to POLITICO.

UPDATE (5:20 p.m.): ABC News has released the following statement, promising to issue a retraction and an apology if it turns out that Scott did not have brain cancer:

ABC News continues to report the most recent facts on ABCNews.com, including our previous reporting and the conflicting statement from the coroner. ABC News is attempting to reach Scott's family to confirm the assistant chief coroner's statement. After speaking with the family or a representative of the family we will update our reporting accordingly. If it comes to light at that time that incorrect information was reported, ABC News will issue a full retraction and apology.